US BASKETBALL CHAMP HONORS CHAPEL HILL VICTIM
North Calorina, 27 Rabi’ul Akhir 1436/17 February 2015 (MINA) – Paying tribute to a devoted fan, the Golden State Warriors point guard Stephen Curry has honored one of Chapel Hill three young Muslim victims, Deah Sahddy Barakat, during an NBA All-Star event over the past weekend.
“#RIP to my fan and from what I hear a great human, his wife & sister-in-law. Horrible tragedy & prayers to his family!” the American basketball player Stephen Curry posted on Twitter, On Islam quoted by Mi’raj Islamic News Agency (MINA) as reporting.
Deah Shaddy Barakat, 23 his wife Yusor Mohammad Abu-Salha, 21 and her sister Razan Mohammad Abu-Salha, 19, were found dead at a condominium complex off campus.
The suspect of the Chapel Hill shooting, Craig Hicks, was said to have been angered over a parking dispute. The argument was rejected by commentators and family members of the victims said they believe the staunch self-proclaimed anti-theist was motivated by race and religion.
Barakat was an American football and basketball fan, he was also one of Curry’s the biggest fans. Carry’s honor came after several calls by Barakat’s close friends who reached out to the player to honor his big fan.
According to his friends, Barakat used wear Curry’s number 30 Jersey during his basketball games. He also named basketball team he played with in local tournaments the “Aspiring Splash Brothers”, after the Warriors duo of Curry and Klay Thompson.
Moreover, Barakat appeared in wedding photo dressed in a tuxedo and sneakers dribbling a basketball, just like a photo of Curry from a GQ magazine photoshoot.
“So anytime you have a guy that was that supportive and takes it to a whole another level, I’m going to do something tonight,” Curry said before Saturday’s game, Mercury News reported.
The 23-year-old Muslim was a dental student at the University of North Carolina.
He majored in business administration and management at NCSU before enrolling at UNC-Chapel Hill in 2013 to pursue his doctorate in dental surgery. Barakat volunteered with a charity providing emergency dental care to children in Palestine.
On January 29, Barakat posted a Facebook photo of a Durham project that gave dental supplies and food to more than 75 homeless people this year.
Solidarity
The NBA All-Star player wrote #CurryFORDEAH and #RIPDEAH on the shoes he wore during the Shooting Stars event
Showing solidarity with the family of the slain Muslims, the NBA All-Star player wrote #CurryFORDEAH and #RIPDEAH on the shoes he wore during the Shooting Stars event and the 3-point contest at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn.
“It only seemed right to honor him and his family, and hopefully they know that people are thinking about them,” Curry explained at a Saturday press conference posted on YouTube.
“They’re not alone, and hopefully it can give them some kind of peace and comfort knowing that he was a special guy. And I just did my little part to shed light toward him.”
Curry added: “I’m going to send them the shoes I wore yesterday. And hopefully they know that I’ve been thinking about them,” USA Today reported. Born in March 1988, Curry is one of the NBA league’s best shooters
With averaged career highs of 24.0 points (seventh in the NBA) and 8.5 assists (fifth) along with 4.3 rebounds and 1.63 steals, Curry became the first player in Warriors history to average 24 points and eight assists in a single season.
The 1.91m player, who is in his sixth season as a guard with the Warriors, was twice named the Southern Conference Player of the Year in 2008. He was also was a member of the USA Men’s Basketball Senior National Team that won Gold Medals at the FIBA World Championships twice in 2010 and 2014.
Shocked by the heinous crime, world Muslims mourned the three young American Muslims in North Carolina, pouring into social media to send messages of solidarity to the victims’ families.
Twitter users started to employ the hashtag “#MuslimLivesMatter,” to comment on how the mainstream media ignored the news of the murder which did not make national headlines. (T/P011/P3)
Mi’raj Islamic News Agency (MINA)
